Alberta announces two-year extension for ag plastics recycling program

The Government of Alberta has renewed its funding and approved a two-year extension for the Alberta Ag-Plastic Recycle It! pilot program through December 2027.

Launched in 2019, the pilot provides Alberta producers with practical recycling options for materials such as plastic grain bags and baler twine. Beginning in 2026, the pilot will expand to include collection programs for compacted silage plastic and bale wrap in select regions of the province.

The program was developed by the Agricultural Plastics Recycling Group (APRG), a coalition of recyclers, commodity groups, farmers, municipalities, and non-profits, and is operated by Cleanfarms in partnership with APRG. The organizations work collaboratively to advance responsible agricultural plastics management across Alberta.

“Alberta Agriculture’s ongoing support of the pilot has allowed farmers to adopt more sustainable practices for plastic waste, while also helping to determine what an effective permanent program may look like,” says Assar Grinde, Chair of APRG and past director and delegate with Alberta Beef Producers. “The pilot has had great success with grain bags, and we are excited to build on the huge growth in twine collection volumes over the past year.”

Managing used agricultural plastics

To date, Alberta farmers have returned more than 4.9 million kilograms of agricultural plastic to collection sites for recycling. That amount is equivalent to approximately 260 semi-trailers of grain bags and 38 semi-trailers of baler twine, or enough twine to wrap roughly 1.8 million large square hay bales.

Renewed funding will also support the return of the Great Twine Round-Up, a province-wide collection contest that encourages communities to recycle used baler twine, with cash prizes awarded to local charities and 4-H clubs. During the first year of the contest, participants returned an estimated 16,500 kilograms of baler twine for recycling.

According to the province, up to 3,350 tonnes of bale wrap and silage plastic are used annually by Alberta’s cow-calf operations, cattle feeders, and dairy farms. Insights gained through the expanded pilot are expected to inform the design of a future, province-wide collection system for these materials.

Your feedback at work

The program extension follows recent provincial engagement on the long-term management of agricultural plastics waste. Between July 31 and October 3, 2025, agricultural plastics producers, municipalities, agricultural service boards, commodity groups, farmers, ranchers, and recycling organizations provided input on which materials should be included, material recovery targets, collection service standards, and cost implications across the value chain.

The Government of Alberta has indicated that feedback from the engagement will be considered as part of future policy and decision-making related to agricultural plastics management.